Uropeltis ceylanica

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Uropeltis ceylanica
Silybura shortii.jpg
Scientific classification Red Pencil Icon.png
Kingdom: Animalia
Phylum: Chordata
Class: Reptilia
Order: Squamata
Suborder: Serpentes
Family: Uropeltidae
Genus: Uropeltis
Species:
U. ceylanica
Binomial name
Uropeltis ceylanica
Cuvier, 1829
Synonyms [2]
  • Uropeltis ceylanicus
    Cuvier, 1829
  • Uropeltis Ceylanicus
    Cocteau, 1833
  • Uropeltis ceylonica
    Wagler, 1830
  • Pseudo-typhlops ceylanicus
    Schlegel, 1839
  • Siluboura Ceylonicus
    Gray, 1845
  • U[ropeltis]. Ceylonicus
    — Gray, 1845
  • [Coloburus] Ceylanicus
    A.M.C. Duméril & A.H.A. Duméril, 1854
  • Siluboura ceylonica
    — Gray, 1858
  • Silybura ceylanica
    W. Peters, 1861
  • Silybura brevis
    Günther, 1862
  • C[oloburus]. Ceylanicus
    Jan, 1863
  • Silybura nilgherriensis
    Beddome, 1863
  • Siluboura ceylanica
    — Günther, 1864
  • S[ilybura]. ceylonica
    — Günther, 1875
  • Silybura nilgherriensis var. annulata
    Beddome, 1886
  • Silybura brevis
    Boulenger, 1893
  • Silybura ellioti var. annulata
    — Boulenger, 1893
  • Uropeltis ceylanicus
    M.A. Smith, 1943
  • Uropeltis (Siluboura) ceylanicus
    Mahendra, 1984
  • U[ropeltis]. ceylanicus annulata
    Murthy, 1990
Common names: Ceylon earth snake, Cuvier's shieldtail, Kerala shieldtail.

Uropeltis ceylanica is a species of nonvenomous shieldtail snake in the family Uropeltidae. The species is endemic to the Western Ghats of South India. No subspecies are currently recognized as being valid, but the presence of several synonyms, many recently resurrected, calls for further taxonomic studies of this species complex. [3] It is a burrowing snake with a pointy head equipped to penetrate the soil. It has a thick tail which looks as if it has been cut at an angle. In Kerala it's called iru thala moori, which means two headed organism, as the tail end looks like another head. It primarily eats earth worms.

Contents

Geographic range

U. ceylanica is found in the Western Ghats of southern India from Goa, Castle Rock southwards to Travancore (Agasthyamalai) near Trivandrum. The type locality given as "Ceylan"— is a mistake, since this species has never been found in Sri Lanka. [2]

Description

The dorsum of U. ceylanica is brown or blackish brown; sometimes patterned with spots or streaks. The venter is yellowish; some specimens have dark brown spots or are entirely brown. The ventral side of the tail is brown or black in the middle, and yellow on the sides.

Adults may attain a total length (including tail) of 45 cm (18 in).

The dorsal scales are arranged in 17 rows at midbody (in 19 rows behind the head). The ventrals number 120-146; the subcaudals number 8-12.

The snout is rounded. The rostral is one-fourth the length of the shielded part of the head. Portions of the rostral are visible from above and shorter than its distance from the frontal. Nasals are in contact with each other behind the rostral. The frontal is slightly longer than it is broad. The diameter of the eyes is more than half the length of the ocular shield. The total length of the snake is 21 to 29 times the diameter of the body. The ventrals are twice as large as the contiguous scales. The end of tail is flat dorsally, obliquely truncated, with strongly keeled scales which are bi-, tri-, or quadricarinate. It has a terminal scute with a transverse ridge and two points. [4]

Related Research Articles

Platyplectrurus trilineatus, commonly known as the Tri-striped shieldtail snake or the lined thorntail snake, is a species of uropeltid snake endemic to the Western Ghats of Southern India. Like most other shieldtail snakes, it is presumed to be a nocturnal, fossorial snake inhabiting evergreen forests. A very rare snake, about which nothing is known in terms of live colouration and natural history.

<i>Rhinophis sanguineus</i> Species of snake

Rhinophis sanguineus, commonly known as the salty earth snake, is a species of uropeltid snake found in the Western Ghats of India.

Uropeltis beddomii, commonly known as Beddome's earth snake, is a species of snake in the family Uropeltidae. The species is endemic to India.

Uropeltis broughami, commonly known as Brougham's earth snake or the Sirumalai shieldtail, is a species of snake in the family Uropeltidae. The species is endemic to the Western Ghats in southern India.

Uropeltis dindigalensis, commonly known as the Dindigul uropeltis and the Sirumalai Hills earth snake, is a species of snake in the family Uropeltidae. The species is endemic to Sirumalai and surrounding hill ranges of the southern Eastern Ghats, in Dindigul district of Tamil Nadu state in South India.

<i>Uropeltis ellioti</i> Species of snake

Uropeltis ellioti, commonly known as Elliot's earth snake and Elliot's shieldtail, is a species of snake in the family Uropeltidae. The species is endemic to India.

<i>Uropeltis macrolepis</i> Species of snake

Uropeltis macrolepis, commonly known as the Bombay earth snake, the Bombay shieldtail, and the large-scaled shieldtail, is a species of snake in the family Uropeltidae. The species is endemic to southern India. There are two recognized subspecies.

Uropeltis macrorhyncha is a nonvenomous shield tail snake species endemic to India. No subspecies are currently recognized.

<i>Uropeltis maculata</i> Species of snake found in India

Uropeltis maculata is a nonvenomous shield tail snake species endemic to southern India. No subspecies are currently recognized. Its common name is spotted earth snake.

Uropeltis nitida is a species of nonvenomous shield tail snake. It is endemic to southern India. No subspecies are currently recognized.

Uropeltis ocellata is a non-venomous shield tail snake species found in southern India.

<i>Uropeltis phipsonii</i> Species of snake

Uropeltis phipsonii, commonly known as Phipson's shieldtail, is a species of snake in the family Uropeltidae. The species is endemic to India.

<i>Uropeltis pulneyensis</i> Species of snake

Uropeltis pulneyensis, commonly known as the Palni shieldtail, is a species of uropeltid snake endemic to the Western Ghats of India.

Uropeltis rubrolineata is a nonvenomous shield tail snake species endemic to southern India. No subspecies are currently recognized.

<i>Uropeltis rubromaculata</i> Species of snake

Uropeltis rubromaculata is a nonvenomous shield tail snake species endemic to southern India. No subspecies are currently recognized.

Smith's earth snake, also known commonly as the violet shieldtail, is a species of nonvenomous snake in the family Uropeltidae. The species is endemic to India.

Uropeltis is a genus of nonvenomous shield tail snakes endemic to peninsular India. As of 2022, 26 species are recognized as being valid.

<i>Rhinophis</i> Genus of snakes

Rhinophis is a genus of nonvenomous shield tail snakes found in Sri Lanka and South India. Currently, 24 species are recognized in this genus. Of the 24 species, 18 are endemic to Sri Lanka, while 6 are endemic to South India.

<i>Uropeltis shorttii</i> Species of snake

Uropeltis shorttii, also known as the Shevaroy Hills earth snake or Shortt's shieldtail snake, is a species of non-venomous snake endemic to the Southern Eastern Ghats of India. This species was first described as Silybura shorttii by Richard Henry Beddome, in 1863. It is found only in the Shevaroy Hills of Salem district in Tamil Nadu state in South India. This species was misclassified into Uropeltis ceylanica, a snake endemic to the Western Ghats, for a long time, till a recent taxonomic study proved it to be a distinct species with a very narrow geographic range. It is a burrowing snake, presumed to be nocturnal; feeding on soft-bodied worms. Becomes active during the rains. Shevaroy HilIs Earth Snake has most recently been assessed for The IUCN Red List of Threatened Species in 2019. Uropeltis shorttii is listed as Critically Endangered under criteria B1ab(iii).

<i>Uropeltis madurensis</i> Species of reptile

Uropeltis madurensis, the Madurai shieldtail, is a small, fossorial, non venomous, snake of the family Uropeltidae, endemic to the Western Ghats of South India.

References

  1. Ganesh, S.R.; Giri, V. (2021). "Uropeltis ceylanica". The IUCN Red List of Threatened Species . IUCN. 2021: e.T127972986A127973772. Retrieved 19 October 2021.
  2. 1 2 McDiarmid RW, Campbell JA, Touré TA (1999). Snake Species of the World: A Taxonomic and Geographic Reference, vol. 1. Washington, District of Columbia: Herpetologists' League. 511 pp. ISBN   1-893777-00-6 (series). ISBN   1-893777-01-4 (volume).
  3. "Uropeltis ceylanica". Integrated Taxonomic Information System . Retrieved 1 September 2007.
  4. Boulenger, G.A. (1893). Catalogue of the Snakes in the British Museum (Natural History). Volume I., Containing the Families...Uropeltidæ... London: Trustees of the British Museum (Natural History). (Taylor and Francis, printers). xiii + 448 pp. + Plates I–XXVIII. (Silybura brevis, pp. 158–159).

Further reading